The following is an overview of the changes made to AutoCAD 2018 for Mac.
Migration
Seamlessly migrate your custom files and settings from AutoCAD 2017 for Mac to AutoCAD 2018 for Mac. The migration utility starts automatically when you first open AutoCAD 2018 for Mac. Click View Details to select which files and settings you want to migrate.
Palettes
Palettes can be docked or floating. Docked palettes are organized using tabs. Auto-hide can be turned on for docked palettes to increase your drawing area. The palette title bars remain visible and if you have multiple docked palettes, there is a title bar for each tab. Mouse over the title bar for the palette you want to show, and the palette automatically expands. Floating palettes can be resized and moved to a second screen to save valuable screen space.
Command Alias Editor
Command aliases are shortened command names that can be entered at the Command prompt as an alternative to the standard full command name and are stored in a program parameter (PGP) file. Previously, the command aliases were edited using a text editor, but a new tab has been added to the Customize dialog making it easy to edit, add, and remove command aliases.
Touch Bar
Support for the Apple touch bar has been added. While you are using AutoCAD for Mac, the Touch Bar displays icons for function key shortcuts.
You can customize the touch bar by clicking
Plot and Page Setup
The Plot dialog box contains the following updates:
- Directly modify all plot settings including paper size, scale, offset, plot stamp, and more
- Switch, save, or import a page setup
- "None" printer support
- PDF plotters support
- Inherit the paper size information from the drawing
- Apply the current plot settings to the active layout
PDF Import
The PDF format stores text using TrueType fonts, but PDF does not support text that uses AutoCAD SHX fonts. Instead, text objects that use SHX fonts are stored in PDF as geometric objects to maintain visual fidelity.
When you import a PDF file that includes SHX geometry, you can use PDFSHXTEXT as a post-processing tool to convert the selected geometry into single-line mtext objects. The conversion process compares the selected geometry against the SHX fonts defined in the PDF Text Recognition settings. When the geometry and an SHX font are a close enough match to pass the recognition threshold that you specify, the geometry is converted into multiline text objects.
Combine Text
The TXT2MTXT command has been enhanced to support mtext objects. This command is especially useful to combine multiple, single-line mtext objects created using the PDFSHXTEXT text recognition tool.
External Reference Paths
The default path type for external references is now set to Relative. Additional capabilities include the following:
- When you fix the path for a missing external reference, you can now apply the same path for other missing reference files.
- When you save the host drawing in a new location, you are prompted to update the relative paths for the external references.
- You can attach references with Relative Path type in unnamed files.
Flatten Command
A new command, FLATTEN, creates a 2D representation of selected objects and projects them onto the current viewing plane. FLATTEN results in 2D objects that retain their original layers, linetypes, colors, and object types where possible. You can use FLATTEN to create a 2D drawing from a 3D model, or you can use it to force the thickness and elevations of selected objects to 0.
DWG Format Update
The DWG format for all AutoCAD-based products has been updated to the 2018 version. When saving files back to previous versions of an AutoCAD DWG format, certain data may be ignored and will not be accessible by earlier versions of the software.
Miscellaneous Updates
- A new Command filter drop-down is available in the Customize dialog (CUI command) allowing you to show just the custom commands.
- Objects that are moved off screen during selection remain in the selection set.
- Icons have been updated for a clean, modern look. Some examples:
